Advantages and Merits of E-books

Advantages related to cost:

·         According to an estimation done in August 2009, there are over 2 million e-books which readers can download free of cost.  The count keeps on increasing everyday.

·         Nowadays, almost all the classics are available as e-books for low or no cost.

·         The e-books are generally cheaper when compared to their hard copy counterparts.

Advantages related to reading:

• Nowadays, it is not mandatory to have either a computer to read an e-book.  Several e-book readers are available in market and you can carry them anywhere like a printed book.
• Depending on the device, an e-book can be read in low light or even total darkness.
• Readers can enlarge or change fonts according to their convenience.
• Readers can make use of text-to-speech software to read the text aloud.  It is a boon for partially sighted persons and elders.
• You can search for and locate any key word easily.  
• Some of the publishers are giving the opportunity for the readers to get an e-book in whatever format they want.

Advantages related to Knowledge building and Research:

• All fiction written prior to 1900 is freely available in the public domain.

Advantages related to availability:

• An e-book can be purchased and downloaded at any time whereas one has to go to a bookshop or library during its working hours when one wants to buy or borrow a hard copy
• E-books can be delivered in no time.
• You can take any number of back-ups of an e-book with no cost and can use them in case of loss or damage of original copy.  

Advantages related to publication:

• E-publication is a boon for unpopular, upcoming, and amateur writers as it is easier and cheaper for authors to self-publish an e-book.
• Publishers can make quick bucks with some of the most wanted e-books.
• Publisher of e-books needs not to incur any expenditure for the replication and delivery of e-books.

Advantages related to other issues:

• E-book collection or e-library requires no or little room and weight.
• The production of e-books does not consume materials such as paper and ink and thus, e-books do a great favor to environment.  Production of printed books also requires water and electricity, which are not required for the production of e-books.  Thus, e-books can be called user-friendly publications.
  
  
  Written by: S. Chandrashekara Reddy
  Ph.No: 91-9849856722
  Mail Id: chandrashekara_reddy@yahoo.co.in